Oral Surgery is a specialty described by the General Dental Council (GDC) as "treatment and ongoing management of irregularities and pathology of the jaw and mouth that require surgical intervention".
It includes the specialty previously known as Surgical Dentistry.
Important: Eligibility for Specialty Training
Most dentists will have completed at least 1 year of Dental Core Training (DCT) before applying to Specialty Training. By the time you're appointed to a Specialty Training post, you must have completed DCT2 or equivalent (as demonstrated by National Certificate of Dental Core Equivalence (NCDCE)).
Applicants must be registered with the GDC before training begins.
About Dental Specialty Training
Dental Specialty Training usually follows on from Dental Core Training (DCT), though some dentists who have been working in practice for a while also apply.
It runs for between 3 and 5 years depending on the specialty.
Non-urgent advice: Oral Surgery curriculum
The content of the curriculum was developed by Specialty Advisory Committees who report to the relevant Dental Faculties of the Royal Colleges.
View the Oral Surgery curriculum on the GDC’s website.
Why undertake Specialty Training?
While most dental graduates look forward to a career providing a full range of oral health care to patients in general dental practice, many have an interest in a specific aspect of dentistry.
Dentists can achieve specialist status by gaining entry to one of the Speciality Training programmes.
Salaries for specialty trainees
Salaries for specialty trainees vary across the 4 nations of the UK.
For information about pay and conditions in England, go to NHS Employers.
For Northern Ireland, go to the Northern Ireland Department of Health.
For Scotland, go to the Scottish Government Health and Social Care Directorates (SGHSC).
For Wales, go to Health in Wales.
Page last reviewed: 30 September 2022